A Sensory Box is a container filled with any kind of tactile material that kids explore with their hands. With a Sensory Box children are using their sight, touch and smell to experience their environment in a totally new way. Itís a great way for children to engage their senses and also to relax.

Drop-cloth or bed sheet
Plastic dishpans or bins
Plastic scoops or spoons of various sizes and shapes
Small measuring cups
Bag of cocoa mulch, fine sand, bird seed, shaving cream or other materials

How-To

For the Sensory Box you will need a container to hold all the tactile materials you collect. If the material is messy and you are working indoors, be sure to put down an old sheet or drop cloth to make clean up easier.

To start with, get all the kids together and give one separate bin to two to three kids to share. Then encourage them to start to fill up and dump out the material from the Sensory Box, either with the spoons you supplied or with their hands.

You will be surprised to notice that once the activity begins, not a word is said. The kids will be so busy focusing on what they are feeling, that they will hardly pay attention to you. And if youíre lucky, it will help them get along and also relax.